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The movie 'I Can Speak' is based on the true story of the women who testified before the U.S. House of Representatives to pass House Resolution No. 121, a resolution stating that Japan should formally acknowledge, apologize and accept its coercion of young women into slavery during colonial times and World War II. Pictured are two victims, Jan Ruff-O'Hearn and Okbun, as depicted in the film.


Photos = Myung Films

"I Can Speak" (아이 캔 스피크), a film that tells the story of an elderly woman who was once a victim of sexual slavery during colonial times and World War II, was released nationwide on Sept. 21. It has been topping the box office ever since. 

The film, though it discloses the protagonist's hidden past in the previews, does not fail to take the audience on an emotional journey. 

In the second act, when we learn that Okbun, the lead character, suffered as a victim of sexual slavery in her youth, we aren't surprised by this revelation. In fact, up until that point, Okbun has been portrayed as a seemingly ordinary granny, the type you could easily run into on the streets of Seoul. If there is any particularity, it's that Okbun is notorious for filing complaints with the local district office about the many wrongs she spots in her neighborhood.


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The screenplay for the movie 'I Can Speak' was the prize-winning entry in a contest organized by the CJ Cultural Foundation in 2014. Pictured, the film's lead Okbun (right) receives her first English lesson from Minjae, a civil servant whom she meets at the district office.


The storyline develops as Okbun befriends Minjae, a civil servant recently transferred to the district office who happens to speak good English. Determined to learn English, Okbun abandons her duties as the neighborhood complainer, and charges forth in her pursuit of a new language, while we as the audience learn of her past suffering. 

Finally, we discover the resonant message hidden behind the film's title. The words "I can speak" not only testify to Okbun's ability to express herself in English, but they also symbolize the courage and strong will of the victims of sexual slavery to stand up and to raise their voices in their defense. 

The climax of the movie unfolds in a U.S. courtroom where, in real life, several women testified before the U.S. House of Representatives in 2007 to pass House Resolution No. 121, a resolution stating that Japan should formally acknowledge, apologize and accept its coercion of young women into slavery during colonial times and World War II. 

Just as the actual victims, including Lee Yong-su and the late Kim Gun-Ja, testified before the court, Okbun boldly faces the House of Representatives and demands a formal apology from Japan. 

Ahead of the release on Sept. 6, the film's director Kim Hyun Seok said during a press conference that, "The most fictitious part of the movie is that the women testified in English. In reality, the women testified in Korean before the court in 2007." 

The director stressed, however, that the words spoken during the testimony in the film were all based on actual events. "The Japanese sex slave issue has still not been fully resolved, and my hope is that through Okbun, those people that chose to just stand by idly, ignoring the issue, will finally take note and take heed," he said. 


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Actress Na Moon-hee portrays Okbun, the lead character in 'I Can Speak,' as she testifies before the U.S. House of Representatives.